This application relates to dental fiberoptic handpiece hose assemblies, and more particularly to dental fiberoptic handpiece hose assemblies that are field-serviceable, that also contain a swivel connection member and that are connected to the handpiece by a quick disconnect construction.
In the modern dental office, one of the main pieces of equipment used by the dentist is the handpiece. The handpiece is connected to its power supply by a long, flexible hose. The hose contains parallel passageways for transmitting drive air, chip air, water and light to the handpiece and for removing exhaust air from the handpiece.
A typical commercially available hose has four passageways for the air and liquid transmissions and a fifth central passageway containing a fiberoptic bundle for transmitting light to an illuminator located in the handpiece to provide extra light to assist the dentist during the cutting, polishing or other activities in the patient's oral cavity. Another conventional hose comprises a flexible outer tube, often cloth-covered, that contains a plurality of separate conduits or tubings for transmitting the air, water and light to the handpiece.
Representative of these conventional assemblies is that shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,553,938 (Olsen).
During dental operations the handpiece is often twisted, rotated or reoriented to allow the dentist to work at all angles in the patient's oral cavity. In order to permit this twisting, rotating and reorientation, the hose needs to be attached to the handpiece by a swivel arrangement. Various assemblies have been proposed to allow for a maximum amount of swiveling, such as the assembly shown in the above-referenced Olsen patent. Also representative of swivelable handpieces assembly are U.S. Pat. No. 4,303,392 (Rollofson) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,080,737 (Fleer).
Also during use of the dental handpiece, it is a common occurrence that leaks or blockages will occur in the fluid lines that transmit the air and water to the handpiece. It would be preferable if the fiberoptic handpiece and hose could be serviced in the field--that is, in the dentist's office--without the necessity of simply replacing the entire assembly or returning the assembly to the repair shop, neither of which is cost effective. Because returning the parts to the repair shop is not cost effective, the current practice is to simply replace the entire hose assembly rather than repairing it at all.
The conventional fiberoptic bundle is made of glass fibers and is also a problem area in that it is relatively quite heavy and non-flexible. The weight of the fiberoptic bundle increases the fatigue encountered by the dentist during his workday. The non-flexibility of the fiberoptic bundle increases the likelihood of breaks occurring in the fiberoptic line during the twisting rotating and reorientation of the hose that occurs during the use of the handpiece.
Many conventional fiberoptic handpieces are also touch-activated--that is, the fiberoptic bundle is activated by the touch of the operator to transmit light to the handpiece. This is accomplished by the use of a metal adapter mounted in the connection between the hose and the handpiece. The fiberoptic bundle is attached to the metal adapter and the adapter detects the touch of the operator to activate the fiberoptic bundle which causes light to be transmitted to the handpiece. The use of metal, however, in the adapter adds to the overall weight of the assembly.
It is an object of the present invention that the dental handpiece can be connected to the hose by a swivel member assembly that is field-serviceable.
It is a feature of the present invention that the connection between the hose assembly and the dental handpiece is releasable to allow access to the internal components to permit servicing in the field. The hose is attached to the rear end of the swivel member assembly to allow easy access to the internal components of the assembly.
It is an advantage of the present invention that leaks or blockages in the air or liquid transmitting components or breakages in the fiberoptic bundle can be repaired in the field without the necessity of replacing the entire assembly or returning the entire assembly to the repair shop.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a swivel connection member assembly whose construction permits the interior of the handpiece to be field-serviceable.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a variety of different types of swivel connection members to accommodate the different structures presently on the market, including a double swivel arrangement for improved utility of the hose assembly and its associated handpiece while still maintaining field-serviceability.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved fiberoptic bundle that is more flexible and lightweight than the presently used fiberoptic bundles. The fiberoptic bundle is also oil resistant and covered with a translucent sheathing.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved touch-activated adapter that activates the fiberoptic bundle to provide light to the dentist's working area.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a handpiece hose assembly made of lightweight materials to reduce the overall weight of the hose assembly and therefore decrease the fatigue of the dentist.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a quick disconnect construction between the handpiece hose assembly and the handpiece to permit quick replacement of the handpiece on the hose assembly.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an aseptic outer tubing with increased oil resistance to improve and lengthen the useful life of the hose assembly.